i don't think this is enough to get an un-- it's politically speaking, it's that friday number that people will be focusing on of the what is the unemployment rate. >> steve: the monthly? >> yeah. i think that may tick up. particularly if more people are looking for work, it could have an impact on this race by picking up even though things are getting marginally better. >> gretchen: does this thursday number, which we always report weekly, the first-time unemployment claims, people walk into the office for the first time, does that number correlate? >> sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't. none of these numbers correlate very well. >> gretchen: so because this went down and lower than expected doesn't mean unemployment will go down tomorrow? >> no. on friday, if the number goes up, for example, goes up to 8, let's say, 8%, that doesn't mean that things are necessarily bad 'cause more people are looking for work. they feel more confident. so all these numbers have to be looked at in context and -- remember, these are statistical estimates. they're not exact. >> steve: right. with the